A mentally challenged forty-year-old trains to compete
in a marathon to help his ailing mother and win respect
for his rural village in this inspirational little comedy.
Based on a true story.

Review by
Calvin
McMillin:

Inspired by actual
people and events, Barefoot Gi-Bong tells the
uplifting story of a mentally challenged forty year-old
living in the rural Korean village of Daraeng. Shin
Hyun-Jun, last seen yucking it up in Marrying the
Mafia 2, plays the happy-go-lucky title character,
a grown man whose handicap results from brain damage
he suffered as a child due to a high fever. Om Gi-Bong
earns his nickname based on his lifelong penchant
for running back-and-forth from his house to deliver
food to his ailing mother, Mrs. Om (Kim Soo-Mi). Perpetually
hunched over and nearly toothless, Mrs. Om has clearly
seen better days. Still, she's a heck of a woman and
loves her son dearly.
Gi-Bong loves to run, an
interest that will soon pay dividends in ways he never
expected. After accidentally taking home first prize
in a local race, Gi-Bong finds himself training for
the National Amateur Half Marathon. His sole intention
for entering the race isn't fame and glory. No, it's
something far more practical and immediate. All Gi-Bong
wants to do is use the prize money to buy his mother
some false teeth, since she's having trouble swallowing
her food.
Mr. Baek (Im Ha-Ryong), the
head of the village, sees Gi-Bong's talent for running
as an opportunity to strengthen his re-election campaign,
so he offers his services as a coach. It seems that
the other village chiefs he pals around with are boasting
how their respective towns nurtured homegrown celebrities,
and Mr. Baek is eager to have one of his own. Meanwhile,
most of the villagers remain skeptical of Gi-Bong's
chances, all save the girl working at the local photo
shop (Kim Hyo-Jin, from Everybody Has Secrets),
who gives Gi-Bong both the courage and the respect
he deserves. Before too long, the villagers - and
Mr. Baek himself --begin to experience a change of
heart, but health problems may keep Gi-Bong out of
the race. Our protagonist remains determined to achieve
his goal, but will he even make it to the finish line?Barefoot Gi-Bong is
a nice little film, one that makes expert use of its
rural location and the more cinematic aspects of the
medium. Shin Hyun-Jun transforms himself into the
mentally handicapped Gi-Bong, never once breaking
character. Gi-Bong's propensity for mimicking the
television weathermen and sportscasters proves rather
amusing, as do the various comedic mishaps he gets
involved with throughout the picture.
If there's one quibble to
be made, it's that sometimes the behavior feels a
bit exaggerated. Unlike Cho Seung-Woo's spot-on performance
as an autistic man in Marathon, Shin's take
on his character seems less reality-based. With his
bad teeth and perpetually unkempt hair, the filmic
Gi-Bong looks very different than the real-life and
otherwise "normal-looking" Gi-Bong featured
briefly in the film's opening scenes. Exaggerated
or not, it's a fine performance all the same, as he
capably handles both the humorous and more serious
aspects of the role with a goofy, heartfelt charm
that is hard to resist. It's a fantasy, and although
we laugh at some of the situations Gi-Bong encounters,
the laughter never seems to come at his expense - at least not in a cruel way.
The supporting players - Kim Soo-Mi, Im Ha-Ryeong, and Kim Hyo-Jin, as well
as the rest of the cast - all do their part in making
Barefoot Gi-Bong a solid piece of family friendly
entertainment. Whatever its miscues, the filmmakers
have their hearts in the right place. While the film
admittedly suffers in comparison to the similarly
themed Marathon, Kwon Soo-Kyeong's Barefoot
Gi-Bong is still an expertly shot film about the
importance of family, faith, and perseverance. How
can you knock a film like that, especially when it
does its job well? (Calvin McMillin, 2006)